FieldNotes from Naturopathic Health Care

This summer, at the annual convention of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, Paul received our profession's Vis Award which honors and celebrates the life and work of the late Dr. William A. Mitchell, (1947-2007) who embodied the Vis- or the healing power of nature. It is given to a naturopathic physician who also embraces, integrates & shares such values. In his acceptance speech, Paul underscored the essential role that vitalism , or working with our patients to stimulate their individual and inherent healing capacity, plays. Couldn't be prouder of Dr. Herscu!

Drs. Herscu holding the Vis Award, look close, it's glass!

Fast forward a few weeks, and I found myself lecturing in shorts & cowboy boots around a fire pit! This was the Revitalization Retreat, a gathering of mostly naturopathic medical students, yearning to keep vitalism alive in our medicine. We came together along a bend of the Sandy River in Oregon, to be in nature, to share beautiful food, to sing our hearts out around the firepit under an umbrella of sparkling stars, and to come back inspired by the promise of naturopathic medicine. I spoke on the topic of Composing a Life, reminding these earnest, smart & dedicated young people that articulating values, creating goals aligned with values and developing strategies to reach goals, this is one good way to compose a life! And when you live in synch with your values every day, voila, you actually feel better.

Here's to an autumn where you get to rethink things a bit, and recalibrate if necessary! To the Vis Medicatrix Naturae, the healing power of nature in and around all of us!

All the best,
Drs. AMY & PAUL

THE ACCIDENTAL ADDICT

America's Hidden Opioid Epidemic:

Homeopathy's role in pain treatment and recovery from addiction

By Amy Rothenberg ND

Chronic and acute pain are among the most common complaints seen in medical practice. As a consequence, there has been a galloping increase in the prescription use of opioid pain relievers, such as oxycodone (e.g., OxyContin®) and hydrocodone (e.g., Vicodin®). Nearly a quarter of a billion of these prescriptions were written in 2013 alone - enough for every American adult to have their own bottle of pills.

Natural medicine can help...

What can homeopathy offer in the face of such dire statistics and such high stakes?

Click here to read the full article

Recipe: Quinoa Salad

This newer grain to reach America is a real hit! It cooks fast, is loaded with protein & is easy to work with. It has very little taste itself but is quick to take on the taste of ingredients around it. This salad takes about 10 minutes to make. I often have a pot of cooked quinoa in the fridge & use that.

To make quinoa, rinse the grain first and then use double the amount of water to the grain. For this recipe, here are the ingredients:

2 cups dry quinoa
4 cups water
5 cloves garlic grated or smashed & minced
1 small onion- sliced and diced, teesy pieces best
1 big carrot, grated
4 radishes, grated
1 cup parsely, chopped
1 cup cilantro, chopped
Juice of one orange
2 TBSP tamari
2TBSP sesame oil
¼ cup olive oil
1/8 tsp salt (if desired)
One cup cashew pieces- toasted can be nice, but not necessary
½ cup raisins or dried cranberries

Make the quinoa by bringing dry amount to a boil with double the water and then turning down the heat. Let simmer until all the water is absorbed. Allow to cool.

Then add all the rest of the ingredients, mix well, chill. Delicious served with a piece of grilled fish & some winter roots or atop a bed of lettuce for a meal unto itself!

Discount on Products from Emerson Ecologics

In an effort to make quality supplements more widely available to our patients and friends, we maintain a virtual dispensary through our office. Products we recommend and use are listed, but you now also have access to the full inventory of products sold by Emerson Ecologics. We trust Emerson as they do examine sourcing of ingredients contained in the products they carry.

Please click here for more details, to access the Emerson site and to receive your all-the-time 15% discount.

Featured Recommendation: Tapestry Health

In this space we like to share information about a product, service or organization whose work we believe in and support. This season we are promoting Tapestry Health of Northampton Mass. I have been most impressed with Tapestry's lead role in helping address our opioid crisis by providing clean needle exchange, overdose prevention and education, Narcan access as well as all the reproductive health care they have always provided. Tapestry provides women, men, and teenagers with comprehensive community-based health services, including:

Birth Control
STD testing
Cervical & breast cancer screening
Emergency contraception
HIV testing

Overdose prevention & education
Syringe access & disposal
Narcan access
Breastfeeding support
Food access for women, infants, and children (WIC)
Community education

You can visit their website or make a donation here:

Hope you enjoy FieldNotes, but we appreciate that you are inundated with emails and communiques! If you no longer wish to receive FieldNotes, no worries, just click on "SafeUnsubscribe" at the bottom. If on the other hand, you have a friend you'd like to share this with, click "Forward this email" below.

In health & vitality,

Amy Rothenberg ND & Paul Herscu ND, MPH

Naturopathic Health Care

www.nhcmed.com

860.763.1225